North Carolina DEN

If you are a Thomas Friedman fan as I am, you will be interested in this link

http://macmillan.hosted.panopto.com/CourseCast/Viewer/Default.aspx?id=610215c3-a3c8-429c-9dcd-3f8b72ee8a99

that features a video and PowerPoint of his latest book Hot, Flat ,and Crowded. Educators may find many of Friedman’s comments in this presentation are very timely with the possible collapse of the American auto industry. World economy and global warming are at the heart of the 21st century learner and what a way to integrate science and social studies for our students.

           Thursday evening, I was privileged to attend a screening for Jeff Corwin’s The Vanishing Frog, a new Animal Planet Documentary in Charlotte, NC at the Discovery Place.  Jeff began his presentation by stating “It was hard to get people to see that frogs are sexy things,” and I very much agreed.  He continued saying that there are currently 6,000 species of amphibians and within just a few years, we would lose 3,000 of them (since the 1980’s, 120 of these species have already vanished).  The Vanishing Frog is a documentary about these species in danger.  I found the film to be extremely interesting and intriguing and “Yes, I even thought that the frogs were cute.”
          During the day, Jeff Corwin was able to visit local Charlotte schools and talk with the students.  One of the audience members asked Mr. Corwin about the types of questions that he was asked.  He said that his favorite question from students was always the ones that asked “How can I help?”  His reply was to start by looking in your local town or community for a “species in crisis” or for other ways that you could get involved with any community organization or efforts to help the environment.  He then proceeded to discuss his first encounter with nature.  As an inner city kid, there were no backyard areas to observe nature so his father would take him to the “inner city pond” where he discovered frogs and their world.  He now has a passion for nature that he shares with the entire world through his documentaries on Animal Planet.
          The Vanishing Frog will premier November 20th at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on Animal Planet.  Also on November 20th, subscribers to Discovery Education Science will find the episode available for the classroom.  If you would like more information about The Vanishing Frog, check out the following links:

• Animal Planet:  The Vanishing Frog
• Save the Frog
• Discovery Education’s Save the Frog Lesson Plans

The Fall Science Supervisors Meeting was held in Charlotte, NC, October 29, 2008, in conjunction with the North Carolina Science Leadership Association (NCSLA) meeting and the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) regional meeting.  The purpose of these meetings were to update districts on current North Carolina issues and national initiatives in science education.

• Elementary, Middle and High School Science and Graduation Project- An effort is being made by districts in our state to share what I would call: “tips and tricks”.
• New Units aligned to Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy- CD containing the science curriculum units in K-12 Science are ready. Participants received three CDs. One K-5, one 6-8, and high school. This resource will be available online soon. It was announced that the resource will be password protected for copyright reasons. Also, the units have include SIOP strategies for ELL students. My teachers will like that. Thanks NCDPI!
• Standard Course of Study Revision- is currently slated for June 2009! That is right, not a draft, the final version. Science textbook adpotion will follow for the coming school year (’10-’11).
• Two Science Competitions- Science Fair and Science Olympiad.
• CCSSO STEM education initiative update- I must have been checking my BlackBerry’s email or Twittering when this topic was discussed. Sorry!
• Testing updates- One thing that I did not know about EOG test schools in Science for grades 5 and 8, is a push to make the test scores a part of the ABC Performance Composite, which would not effect ABC Bonus Money. I am not going to say what I want about that pot of money, it would not be politically correct- wink wink. Oh, and this appears to not be “writing in stone” at this point in time. So, stay tuned middle school folks.
• Presidential awards (PAEMST)- packet contains a flyer. Interesting point here was a we are encouraged to nominate a middle school science teacher.
• Professional Development Opportunities- Teacher Academy
• MSP Project updates
• Exemplary Science programs- opps, must have been looking in my bag os swag…If you are reading this post and you were there please add your snap shot.
• Future Meetings and Institutes- lots of dates or ideas about possible future dates for meetings. One proposed meeting is a Spring Science Supervisors Meeting. Hey that would be cool. IMHO, we need to have it at Wrightsville Beach. Like the week after school ends.
• Ready, Set, SCIENCE! - Thanks to Bev Vance for a great overview of this great resource.

Edd Dunlap, Science Section Chief, Ragan, Spain, and Benita Tipton, you guys rock! Ok, enough brown-nosing. Oh, one more thing- As much as the Westin charges for rooms, it is hard to believe they wanted to charge for WiFi in the rooms. Capitalists!!!   [Maybe I could have left that out]

Have you heard that “inquiry” is now referred to as “Science as Practice”?

From Janice VanCleave’s Guide to the Best Science Fair Projects, Janice VanCleave (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1997)

I can’t begin to count the number of times I have heard this question.  If you are like me, let me introduce you to Science Buddies

http://www.sciencebuddies.org 

This website has over 700 science fair projects, but it is more than just a list.  Steer your students to the Topic Selection Wizard.  After filling out some basic information, the wizard will ask all sorts of questions to figure out their interests.  I answered the questions as a middle school student interested in the environment and technology.  I was please with my results.

The Point of a Parabola: Focusing Signals for a Better Wireless Network 

Rooftop Gardens:  Are they a Cool Idea?

Image Compression vs Image Quality: Finding the Best Tradeoff

Digital Voice Analysis

Once your student has picked a topic, there is a great how to guide and reference material.  And if you still need help there is an Ask the Expert Section.  This forum is a team of volunteer scientists answering questions from students.  Be sure to do a search before asking a question.

Don’t forget about Discovery Edcation Streaming.  They have a “How to Prepare a Science Fair Project” video for middle school and a Magic School Bus video on science fair projects for elementary school. 

Discovery Education also has a great site called Science Fair Central. 

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/sciencefaircentral/

Lastly, what do you do when your project is due in a few days?  Go to Easy Science Fair Projects. 

http://www.easy-science-fair-projects.net/index.html 

Here you will find detailed instructions on how to complete a science fair project in a short amount of time with limited resources.  Don’t expect to win any ribbons with these projects, but they can be handy in a pinch.